The Weekly Sociable Lawyer Round Up

The Sociable Lawyer Round Up features some of the best blog entries on e-lawyering from the past week. We’re always looking for new posts, so if you know any great lawyer blogs, feel free to let us know! Enjoy!

Legal Water CoolerPR, As We Knew It, Is DEAD
September 15 by Heather Morse
“We all know traditional PR. You hire a PR agency to help you create your message and get the word out. They get your attorney quoted in a newspaper, or help you place an article, or get on the right industry panel. They make lots of phone calls, coordinate a reporter calling you back, and bill by the hour, or are on a monthly retainer. That’s starting to change.”

Law Marketing MonitorThe Evolution Of Law Firm Web Marketing
September 16 by Gyi Tsakalakis
“Web technology continues to evolve at a mind-boggling rate. As new technologies emerge, the strategies available to market businesses online have also transformed immensely. In fact, many business owners, including legal professionals, remain evolutionary steps back when it comes to building an effective online presence. Let’s take a look at where we have been, where we are, and where I believe we are headed.”

LawyeristHow to Announce a New Law Firm
September 20 by Karin Conroy
“You have taken the plunge and decided to open the doors of your own firm. Now you just need to let the whole world know. This article will focus on different practices you can use to call attention to your new venture. The key to success is doing a variety of things to get the word out, not just one main event. I recommend strategizing a medley of contact points, including a formal announcement, an event in your office, press and blog attention.”

My ShingleWhy It Matters That Solos Aren’t the Main Event
September 20 by Carolyn Elefant
“My point here is that if solos were the main event, we could drive decisions that favored our interests. We could advocate for interpretations of our obligation to charge reasonable fees that favor fixed fees, or for rules on cloud computing that are consistent nationwide and allow us discretion to select those systems that in our professional view protect our clients’ security. We could mobilize and file comments on the IRS’ rule instead of waiting to see if just maybe the bar will weigh in. Because we’re not the main event, our interests are not on the bar’s radar.”

The GuardianTweet Success Awaits the Savvy Lawyer
September 21 by Neil Rose
“‘Most lawyers that I speak to dismiss Twitter as yet another plaything for their children. Of what possible relevance, they inquire, could this possibly be for a senior legal practitioner?’ writes Professor Richard Susskind in the new introduction to his highly regarded book The End of Lawyers?, which was published in paperback last week.
‘I reply that I know quite a few general counsel and senior in-house lawyers who now use Twitter and regularly send out messages about what they are doing, what they are thinking, and where they are going; and if my clients were sending out regular updates on their news and views, I would want to be on the receiving end, even if the medium has a slightly silly name.”‘

Sui GenerisLarge Firms: Take Next Social Media Steps
September 21 by Niki Black
“Firms need to conquer their reluctance to allow individual members to engage on social media sites on behalf of the firm. Such personal interaction is the key to an effective online presence since people would rather hire other people to handle their legal matters — not large, impersonal, faceless institutions. One way for a firm to test the social media waters is to choose a handful of select lawyers, such as younger associates and a few tech-savvy partners, to interact on social networking sites on behalf of the firm using their personal social networking personas.”

Gigaom15 Easy-to-Use Apps for Adding Multimedia to Twitter
September 22 by Aliza Sherman
“I love Twitter, but one thing I admit can be lacking from the service is that it doesn’t allow for embedded images, audio or video in the Twitter stream; you can only link to them.
Still, there are plenty of apps to help you to integrate multimedia into your tweets. Here’s a list of handy and easy-to-use services for images, audio and video:”

Law Consulting BlogLawyers: Use Persuasion Principles to Develop Business
September 22 by Cordell Parvin
“Years ago I read a well known book titled Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. In the book author and professor Robert B. Cialdini outlines the six principles of persuasion. They are:

1. Reciprocation

2. Commitment/Consistency

3. Authority

4. Social Validation

5. Scarcity

6. Liking/Friendship

All of these principles should be applied to successful client development.”

Erika NapoletanoYou’re Not the Prom Queen – You’re a Brand
September 22 by Erika Napoletano
“When did we forget the branding lessons learned on the primary school playgrounds and popularity contests that ruled the schools of youth? Cliques. Clubs. Jocks. Nerds. Freaks. People break off and identify with people and trends they like. And who’s more vocal about being a rabid fan of something than a kid?”

Above the LawHave Law Blogs Failed to Live Up to Their Expectations? Biglaw Firms Weigh In
September 23 by Adrian Dayton
“Over the past few weeks, in the comments to my ATL posts, there have been a number of questions about whether or not large law firms are bringing in real clients through their law blogs. While we have seen some instances of big wins that have come as a direct result of law blogs, these have been rare. What about the average law blogs? Have blogs lived up to the expectations of Biglaw firms?”